There's No Life After You
by Holz9364
Summary: On Valentine's Day, 1974 Lucius Malfoy proposes to Narcissa Black. She changes his life, and her influence over him leads him to become a spy in the first wizarding war. His love for his wife, and later for his son, is his motivation in all he does and through that he creates a much safer future for them both. AU/What-If story with good Lucius. For Caitlin :)
1. Part 1

**There's No Life after You**

_**A/N: HAPPY VALENTINES DAY CAITLIN! :D I hope you enjoy this fic! ;)**_

_**This is my first shot at Lucissa so I hope it's not dreadful! It is AU, but I had fun writing it, and I hope it's fun to read!**_

_**The title comes from a song by Daughtry called 'Life After You'.**_

_**Enjoy! **_

* * *

'I don't know why you look so nervous.'

Narcissa Black rolled her eyes at the blond-haired woman who was currently lying on her bed watching her inquisitively, 'You don't know why I'm nervous?'

'It's just a date,' Almina Crouch, Narcissa's best friend, said with a slight smirk, 'you've been courting Lucius for a year now, there have been plenty of them.'

Narcissa shot her friend a glare, 'It's Valentine's Day, Almina,' she said as she smoothed down her dress and tucked her blonde hair behind her ear, 'this isn't just any date.'

Almina grinned, 'Cissy, you've known since you were 17 that you were to marry him for crying out loud.'

'Oh shut up,' Narcissa said half-heartedly, 'you were betrothed to Pollux for two years and I still remember you screaming when he proposed!'

Almina smiled, 'Well, he is a Greengrass, one of the wealthiest and most influential families around. Second only to the Malfoys, I should add.'

Narcissa breathed deeply, 'Exactly, now you see why I'm nervous?'

'You'll make a perfectly wonderful trophy bride,' Almina teased, 'it helps that he actually loves you after all.'

'Not every woman is so lucky,' Narcissa agreed as she slipped into her high heels.

'Pollux and Lucius are the only two exceptions I've seen, and I've been to a lot of arranged marriage weddings,' Almina said as she pushed herself off the bed, 'you're lucky you can marry for love and status, it's rare.'

'I know,' Narcissa said with a smile, 'you're right, I have no reason to be nervous.'

Almina smiled back, 'We'll be wonderful…the two most powerful families in the wizarding world and then our children can get married!'

Narcissa laughed, 'You are getting awfully far ahead of yourself Mina,' she said fondly as they descended the stairs of Black Manor where Narcissa had grown up with her sisters Bellatrix, and Andromeda, her Aunt Walburga and Uncle Orion, and her cousins Sirius and Regulus. Her two elder sisters were married now and had houses of their own, and her two younger cousins were at Hogwarts. Sirius had been all but disowned already for being placed in Gryffindor by the sorting hat, unlike Regulus who was a year younger than him and in Slytherin.

'Is Lucius here yet, Mother?' Narcissa asked her Mother politely as she arrived at the bottom of the stairs.

'He is talking with your Father in the drawing room, Narcissa,' Druella said with a knowing smile.

Almina grinned and said, 'Breathe Cissy.'

'This is the moment we've been waiting for,' Druella said with a smile, 'you must have impressed him, Narcissa.'

'Well of course she has,' Almina said a little indignantly, 'he's fallen in love with our Cissa.'

'Of course he has,' Druella said condescendingly, 'this will bring our family far more power and wealth than either of your sister's marriages. You always were the prettiest one, Cissa.'

Narcissa rolled her eyes, 'Lucius hasn't even proposed yet, Mother,' she said quietly.

'But he will,' Druella said knowingly, 'and then all you have to do is make sure you give birth to a male heir. Surely even you can handle that, after all your eldest sister shows no sign of having children, and the _other _one has had a half-blood girl.'

'Yes, Mother,' Narcissa said with a sigh.

Her Mother was about to reprimand her for the tone she had used, but then the door to the drawing room opened and Narcissa's Father exited with Lucius. He looked particularly handsome tonight in dress robes with his long blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail.

'Narcissa,' Lucius said with a smile, 'I apologise for keeping you waiting. I was just discussing business with your Father.'

'I bet you were,' Almina muttered under her breath.

Narcissa hid a smile as Druella snapped, 'Almina! I think you ought to be going home now.'

Almina smirked and said, 'I'll just go grab my stuff, have fun you two.'

Narcissa smiled at her, 'I'm sure we will,' she said.

Lucius held out his arm to Narcissa, 'Shall we?'

Narcissa nodded, taking his arm and letting her escort her from the house. They apparated to their destination, a lovely (and very posh) wizarding restaurant in London. They were finally free to drop the façade now Narcissa's parents were out of sight and earshot.

'I finally feel like I can breathe,' Narcissa said with a chuckle as they walked into the restaurant which was decorated in red, with rose petals on each table in light of the date.

'Your parents are very strict,' Lucius said with a smile, 'and I do get the impression they have eyes all over that house.'

'Of course they do,' Narcissa said, 'they ask the portraits to listen to conversations and report back to them.'

'They aren't very fond of Mina,' Lucius noted.

Narcissa chuckled, 'They believe she's a bad influence on me. However, they are forced to put up with her now that she's engaged to be married to Pollux Greengrass.'

'Ah yes,' Lucius said with a smirk, 'an instant status boost.'

'Exactly,' Narcissa chuckled.

He pulled out her seat and helped her in, taking his seat across from her at a beautiful corner booth with views out over London, 'this is lovely Lucius,' Narcissa said with a smile, 'although the date surprised me. I never saw you as a traditional romantic.'

'Even I follow some traditions, Narcissa,' Lucius said with a slight smile.

Narcissa smiled back, now fairly certain tonight would be the night as he ordered a bottle of wine.

'So, when is the lovely Mina marrying Pollux?' Lucius asked conversationally as they drank the wine.

'This July,' Narcissa told him, 'She has asked me to be her Maid of Honour, her sister is of course outraged about it.'

'I expect when the time comes, you will ask her to be your Maid of Honour,' Lucius said, and the subtle hint didn't go unnoticed by Narcissa. However, as Almina had said Narcissa had known since she was 17, and since Lucius was 18, that they were to be wed. The marriage contract was outstanding from two generations previously, a Malfoy must wed a Black. Andromeda had disappeared off the face of the earth after marrying a Muggle-born straight out of Hogwarts, and Bellatrix had been tied to the Lestrange family since she was very young. This left only one female Black available to marry the one male Malfoy, Narcissa.

'I expect so,' Narcissa agreed, 'although I don't expect that to go down well with Bellatrix.'

'Oh, of course it won't,' Lucius smirked, 'but there is no rule saying you must make your sister your Maid of Honour.'

'No rule,' Narcissa agreed, 'just tradition.'

'Well you know that I believe some traditions ought to be broken,' Lucius smiled, 'the more important ones, concerning purity of blood however, must be preserved.'

'I'm aware of your views, Lucius,' Narcissa said, not really wanting a political discussion or a rant about Muggle-borns on this particular night.

'I am aware Narcissa, that this was an arrangement,' Lucius said as he took her hands across the table, 'and I am also aware there was no choice for us but to marry. However, I feel blessed because I think we have actually come to care for each other. Something not many Purebloods can say about an arranged marriage.'

Narcissa smiled, recalling her earlier conversation with Almina, 'We should feel very blessed, Lucius. We were lucky enough to know each other throughout Hogwarts. This all feels very natural to me.'

Lucius returned her smile, 'As it does to me. That is why I spoke with your Father earlier Narcissa, and why I am observing tradition for once in my life. This may be an arrangement, but I want it to be more than that.'

Narcissa was not at all surprised as he walked around the table and easily dropped down onto one knee, smiling at her with that charm she loved about him, 'I want this to be an equal marriage, one where both participants love each other and are happy. So Narcissa Druella Black, will you become my wife?'

Narcissa smiled and said fondly, 'Oh Lucius, only you could make a proposal sound like a business deal.'

His smile faltered, but Narcissa didn't keep him in suspense long, 'Of course I will marry you, for love, not just because of the arrangement.'

Looking relieved, if a little flustered, Lucius slipped the diamond ring onto her finger and got to his feet, kissing her very lightly on the lips, 'Thank you,' he said sincerely.

* * *

Narcissa was lying in bed attempting to get to sleep when the floo in her bedroom activated. She knew her Mother regulated the floo line so she would probably barge in here any moment now.

'What happened?' the familiar voice of Almina asked eagerly.

Narcissa chuckled and climbed out of her bed, sitting down on the hard wood floor in front of the fireplace, 'Well he proposed to me,' she said.

Almina grinned, 'You're kidding? Show me the ring!'

Narcissa held up her hand, and the ring sparkled in the light coming from the flames.

'Merlin, Cissy!' Almina said happily, 'it's beautiful! This is fantastic! When is the wedding?'

'I have no idea yet Mina,' Narcissa laughed at her friend's eagerness, 'I expect it will be next summer.'

'I'm so happy for you Cissy!' Almina said, still grinning, 'we'll have kids and we'll have garden parties and they'll be best friends and-'

'Mina!' Narcissa interrupted through her laughter, 'there you go again with the getting too far ahead of yourself!'

Almina laughed, but said no more as the door to Narcissa's bedroom opened, 'Almina! This is an absurd hour to be calling!' Druella snapped as she put an abrupt end to the floo call, 'Narcissa, go to bed!'

Narcissa sighed, 'Yes, Mother,' she muttered as her Mother left the room. She was 20 years old, yet she was being treated like a child. At least soon she would be married to Lucius and out of her Mothers clutches.

* * *

July 1975 brought a beautiful wedding in the sunny garden of Greengrass Manor. Narcissa took her rightful place beside her best friend as Almina prepared to walk down the aisle and marry Pollux Greengrass. She and Lucius had now been engaged for a few months now and would be getting married in June the following year.

'Cissa, I'm nervous,' Almina said as she stood in a beautiful, long, elegant wedding dress.

'This sounds familiar,' Narcissa said with a slight smile.

'Don't Cissa,' Almina said weakly, 'I'm getting married to Pollux. That's the rest of my life, I'll be married for the rest of my life.'

Narcissa smiled and grabbed her best friend's hand, 'And you're marrying a great man Almina. He makes you happy, and you make him happy. Plus he's one of the most powerful, wealthy, handsome men in the wizarding world.'

Almina smiled at her best friend, and squeezed her hand, 'You know how to cheer me up,' she said.

Narcissa laughed, and then it was time for Almina to walk down the aisle. She let go of Narcissa's hand, took a deep breath and began her walk towards married life.

The ceremony was beautiful, as was the meal in the great dining hall of the Manor. The reception in the grand ballroom was fantastic and as Lucius and Narcissa danced they found themselves discussing their own wedding day.

'This is beautiful,' Narcissa said as she looked around the ballroom.

'It is rather impressive,' Lucius agreed, 'but ours will be far better.'

Narcissa raised an eyebrow at him, 'It isn't a competition, Lucius.'

'Of course it is,' Lucius said smoothly, 'and we have the advantage because Almina and Pollux married first.'

Narcissa narrowed her eyes at him, and he defended himself, 'You know that the Malfoy's and Greengrass's have always been rivals, my love.'

'Well, not anymore,' Narcissa said firmly.

Lucius raised his eyebrow, 'and what, pray tell, do you mean by that?'

'I mean that I fully intend to have a marriage contract drawn up once you and I have wed,' Narcissa said truthfully, 'one which states that when there is next a Malfoy and a Greengrass in the same generation they must marry.'

'And how do you intend to do that when the head of house is required to sign and authorise any marriage contract?' Lucius asked her smoothly.

Narcissa grinned and whispered suggestively in his ear, 'Oh, I have my ways.'

Lucius smirked at her, 'I'm sure you do, but I can assure you, I am a very persistent person, Narcissa. You will not beat me on this one, no child of mine will marry a Greengrass.'

'Whatever you say, Lucius,' Narcissa said with an innocent smile.

* * *

Nearly a year had passed since Almina had become Lady Almina Greengrass. It had taken her a surprisingly short time to get used to the luxury, and the parties, and the power, and wealth. Narcissa was now in a wedding dress in a small antechamber that led off of the drawing room at Malfoy Manor. She was nervous, and taking deep breaths as she had that night a year and a half ago when Lucius had officially asked her to marry him.

'Well, someone looks nervous,' Almina smirked.

'Oh, shut up Mina,' Narcissa said weakly as she looked at herself in the mirror.

'You look gorgeous, you don't need to worry about that,' Almina said with a smile as Narcissa stood before her in a beautiful and elegant wedding dress. Her blonde hair was pulled up into a bun and she wore a beautiful tiara which she had inherited from Lucius's Mother.

Almina smiled and said, 'Hey don't worry about it. This life is great, the parties are fantastic, and the Manors as you can see are _amazing_.'

Narcissa chuckled, 'I know the material aspect of it is appealing, to say the least. I'm worried about the marriage part of it, that's the scary aspect.'

'He's a good man, like Pollux,' Almina said as she held her friends hands, 'and he loves you very much Narcissa. You are both going to be very happy together.'

Narcissa smiled, and nodded, 'You're right,' she said as she took another deep breath.

'There is another thing…'

Narcissa looked at her friend, noticing the grin she was trying to contain, 'What is it?' she asked curiously.

'I wanted to tell you before you went on your honeymoon with Lucius,' Almina said with a smile, 'I'm pregnant!'

Narcissa's eyes widened, 'Oh Merlin, that's fantastic Mina!'

Almina grinned, 'Well we've been trying since we got married, and it's finally happening!'

Narcissa hugged her friend tightly and asked, 'How far along are you?'

'3 months,' Almina said, 'we had the St. Mungo's appointment yesterday.'

'I'm so happy for you Mina,' Narcissa said happily as the door to the antechamber opened and Narcissa's Father, Cygnus walked in.

He smiled at his daughter, 'You look beautiful Cissa,' he said as he kissed her on the forehead.

'Thank you, Father,' Narcissa said, feeling far less nervous than she had a few minutes ago.

'Your Mother would have been very proud to see you today,' Cygnus said with a sad smile, 'I am sure she is watching down on us now.'

Narcissa smiled slightly, 'I think she must be.'

Druella had died not long after Almina's wedding after contracting a cold which became something worse, by the time she went to St. Mungo's it was too late.

'Are you ready?' Cygnus asked, offering his arm to his youngest daughter.

'I'm ready,' Narcissa said with a smile, taking her Father's arm as Almina winked at her and grabbed her train.

They left the antechamber and the music began as Narcissa walked down the aisle that had been set up in the drawing room. It _was _bigger than Almina's, but Narcissa had tried to stop Lucius from being overly competitive.

Lucius smiled at her from where he stood in black and silver dress robes, she smiled back as she walked towards him and took her place by his side. They said their vows, and the blood vow took place, binding them for life.

Their meal was lovely, and Lucius murmured in her ear that the food was better than that at Almina and Pollux's wedding. Narcissa kicked him under the table for his comment, and he smirked at her. They moved to the ballroom for the reception and Lucius whispered, 'It's far bigger than Pollux's.'

'Size isn't everything, darling,' Narcissa teased as he drew her in for their first dance.

'It's far grander too,' Lucius said smoothly.

Narcissa merely chuckled and fell into step with him, aware that all eyes were on them as they shared their first dance.

'I don't care if it was better than Almina and Pollux's wedding or not,' Narcissa said with a smile, 'all I care about is that it has been perfect, and I've enjoyed every minute of it.'

'Well Mrs. Malfoy,' Lucius smirked, 'it isn't over yet.'

'It's the start of the rest of our lives,' Narcissa said as she stood on her tiptoes to kiss him.

He smiled down at her as he replied, 'Yes, it is.'

* * *

Almina was glowing throughout her pregnancy, and Narcissa was actually jealous of her best friend and found herself wanting what she had. This led to her and Lucius agreeing to start trying for a child of their own fairly shortly after their wedding.

As the year wore on, and November brought in the cold, frosty air from the North, Almina went into labour. Pollux remained in the waiting room with Lucius and Narcissa there for moral support. He paced for hours as he heard her screams through closed doors. After around 2 hours a Healer emerged and told Narcissa that Almina was asking for her.

Narcissa sat by her best friends side, offering her support in whatever way she could and half an hour later Almina had given birth to a beautiful little boy. Her Husband was delighted as he kissed her and Lucius smiled at them as they sat with their newborn child.

'Now that we have you both here,' Almina said, looking exhausted and dishevelled, 'will you be the baby's Godparents?'

Narcissa beamed and answered on behalf of them both, 'Of course we will!'

Lucius smiled and nodded, 'We would be honoured, Mina,' he assured her.

'What are you going to name him?' Narcissa asked, looking at the little boy who had Almina's blue eyes, and Pollux's dark hair.

'I think…Bartemius, after my Father,' Almina said, glancing to her Husband.

'Bartemius Cyrus Greengrass,' Pollux said with a smile, 'for your Father, and for mine.'

'Barty, for short,' Almina agreed, smiling down at the little boy.

* * *

The year wore on, and Cygnus, Narcissa's Father, got sick. After a short illness in St. Mungo's he passed away, far before his time. Narcissa was distraught as she had always been close to her Father. The funeral was particularly devastating, but Lucius was there for her throughout it. Things between them were fantastic until they hit their first bump in the road, and it was a big one.

'What do you mean, you have something to tell me?'

Narcissa was crossing her arms as she stared at her Husband. He had just come into the Manor very late at night looking incredibly guilty.

Lucius was pacing, unsure what to say, aware of Narcissa's eyes following his every move.

It was approaching Christmas, and they had now been married for about 5 months. Narcissa had moved into the Manor as soon as they had gotten back from their honeymoon and she, like Almina, was finding it very easy to get used to her new lifestyle.

'Lucius,' Narcissa said in a dangerous tone of voice, 'have you been with another woman?'

'No…no…' Lucius said with a shake of his head. He caught her eye, a desperate look in his own eyes, 'I've done something terribly wrong, Narcissa.'

'What have you done?' Narcissa asked quietly.

Lucius breathed deeply as he pulled up his sleeve and showed her a tattoo of some sort. It was a skull, and it seemed to be moving, Narcissa frowned, 'Lucius…I…I've seen that before…on Rodolphus's arm…'

He didn't say anything as his eyes bored into hers, the look of desperation deepening.

Narcissa stared at him in horror, 'Lucius…no, you haven't.'

'I had no choice,' Lucius said desperately, 'he threatened you Narcissa. He threated to kill you if I did not comply with his conditions.'

'Conditions?' Narcissa asked angrily, 'so it gets worse!'

'I didn't think it would come this far!' Lucius said, 'I thought he wanted to purge the wizarding world of Mudbloods, I thought he was a revolutionary. I never knew Narcissa, I never knew he was a murderer.'

'So you killed someone?' Narcissa asked coldly, 'am I sharing a house with a murderer? Is my Husband a murderer?'

All the colour had drained from his face, he opened his mouth to speak but no words came out.

Narcissa turned away from him, breathing deeply, 'You killed someone, Lucius,' it was a statement, not a question.

'It was only a Muggle-'

'Lucius!' Narcissa snapped as she turned around, 'the blood status of the person you _killed _doesn't matter! You still took someone's life and if you can do that once you can do it again!'

He was silent as he fell into an armchair in the drawing room, he looked like a shadow of his former-self, 'Narcissa-'

'Don't ask me to forgive you Lucius,' Narcissa said angrily, 'I thought I was marrying a strong man, someone who would be Minister for Magic one day! I thought you were a leader, but you are just a coward, just a follower, _murdering _people all on the orders of some psychopath!'

'Narcissa!' Lucius snapped, pushing himself to his feet, 'you do not understand why I had to do this! I had no choice! Would you rather I let him kill you, and our unborn child with you?'

Narcissa's eyes widened, 'How did you…'

'I'm not blind, love,' Lucius said quietly, 'I noticed the adjusted waistlines on your dresses, I noticed the lack of food you've been eating in the morning…I was waiting for you to tell me of your own accord.'

Narcissa swallowed, 'I'm 2 months pregnant Lucius, and I'm faced with the fact that our child will have a Father who is a murderer.'

'How am I any different from Frank Longbottom?' Lucius asked angrily, 'he murders people to keep his wife safe!'

'He's an Auror, he murders people like you who kill Muggles!' Narcissa shouted.

'I killed that Muggle to save your life, and that of our child!' Lucius said desperately, 'do you honestly think I wanted to do it? Can you not see how much I regret what I did? But you and that child are the most important thing in this world to me Narcissa, I would do _anything _to protect that.'

Narcissa sank down heavily onto the sofa, 'Then stop this, run away from it.'

'I can't,' Lucius said quietly, 'once the mark has been given and the ritual has taken place there is no backing out.'

Narcissa blew out a breath of air, 'Then what are we to do Lucius?'

'We weather the storm, he will be defeated by the light,' Lucius assured his wife, 'and then we can get on with our lives.'

'So this is really going to become a war?' Narcissa asked weakly.

'I am afraid so,' Lucius said, sitting down next to Narcissa, 'please, Narcissa, try to forgive me.'

'I understand why you did it, Lucius,' Narcissa said quietly, 'but that doesn't mean I will forgive you right away.'

Lucius nodded, letting his head fall into his hands, 'What have I done?'

* * *

'Merry Christmas, Mina!' Narcissa said to her friend as she and Lucius arrived at Greengrass Manor for their Christmas meal together.

'Merry Christmas Cissa!' Mina said, pulling her friend in for a hug, 'try to keep your voice down, Barty has just fallen asleep.'

'Oh, of course,' Narcissa said with a smile, 'I have news for you, Mina.'

Almina's eyes widened as she read her friends mind, 'Oh my! Are you expecting a baby?'

Narcissa nodded, a smile spreading across her face, 'I'm 3 months pregnant.'

'Oh, Cissa!' Almina said as she hugged her once more, 'I'm so happy for you!'

'Thank you,' Narcissa said, still grinning as they entered the drawing room where the men were talking.

'Lucius, you fool!' Pollux was hissing, 'you should have stayed neutral-'

'Pollux, I had no choice!' Lucius hissed back, 'it was that or he killed Narcissa, and she's expecting. It's a boy too, and we need an heir.'

'You always have a choice,' Pollux muttered, 'you should never have gotten involved with him in the first place.'

'You don't understand,' Lucius said darkly, 'he has methods of making people submit to him, they are unthinkably cruel and manipulative. He will come for you soon Pollux, and mark my words it will be impossible for you to remain neutral.'

'Just watch me,' Pollux hissed.

* * *

Time passed, and Lucius continued to work for Voldemort. Although, by February 1977 he had yet to kill another person. His beloved lord had him working mostly reconnaissance missions and wherever he could he stunned or used non-lethal charms. He was constantly terrified he was going to be caught out and his family murdered, and he had been losing weight due to the fear and the stress.

Things took a turn for the worse in the middle of February when Almina stumbled through the floo, her face red and her eyes puffy as if she had been crying.

Narcissa panicked and rushed to her, ushering her onto the sofa in the drawing room, 'Mina! What on earth is wrong?'

'It's Barty,' Almina sobbed, 'we had his 3 month check-up at St. Mungo's, and he's sick.'

Narcissa's stomach churned, 'Sick?'

'He has a disease of the blood, Narcissa,' Almina said through her tears, 'it is incurable.'

Narcissa frowned, 'I don't understand Mina…'

'The Healers called it Haemophilia, or the Pureblood Disease, as it is more commonly known,' Almina said and then it sunk in for Narcissa.

'Oh my…' Narcissa trailed off, 'I'm so sorry Almina.'

'I must have been a carrier for the disease, through my Mother,' Almina said weakly, 'the last person in my family to have it was my Uncle, but I never knew,' she took a breath, 'I never knew until today that females carry the disease yet only males can get it.'

Narcissa shook her head, 'No, neither did I,' she admitted, 'I thought it was just something that happened periodically in Pureblood families.'

'Has anyone in your family ever had it?' Almina asked through her tears.

Narcissa nodded, all colour drained from her face, 'My Uncle…my Mother's sister.'

Almina's sobs got louder, 'Your Mother must have been a carrier for the disease, Narcissa, which means you may be.'

Narcissa didn't know what to say, she was frozen. The disease known as the Pureblood Disease only affected males, that much had been widely known. However Narcissa had assumed it was just a natural occurrence due to inbreeding. The fact that it was passed down through female carriers made it easy to see why it was so common in Pureblood families however because of the fact all the families were interlinked by marriage and children. She had no way of knowing whether it would affect her because Bellatrix had no children, and Andromeda only had a girl.

'It gets worse, Cissa,' Almina said, her face a red, puffy mess, 'the Healers said they believe it to be most common in the first born male.'

Narcissa swallowed hard, she was expecting a boy and it would be her first-born. The disease highly restricted the lifespan of a child, it was possible to live with it, but rare. It stopped the blood from clotting, meaning a small fall could be life threatening, no child with that disease would grow into a strong healthy adult, and that was exactly what an heir needed to be. In the worst, and most severe cases children could have brain haemorrhages, leaving them either severely brain damaged, or dead.

'How bad is it, for Barty?' Narcissa asked in a choked voice.

'Severe,' Almina said miserably, 'the Healers don't expect him to live beyond 5 years of age.'

The Crouch's, who Almina had contracted the disease from, and the Blacks, all had common ancestors, they were as interlinked as any other Pureblood family tended to be. Narcissa was now acutely aware of the fact that the child she was currently carrying could be in real danger.

'I'm so sorry Narcissa.'

* * *

Narcissa had never seen her Husband cry. She knew him to be strong through everything, she had seen him get angry, she had seen him scared. But she had never, ever, seen him cry.

When she told him what Almina had told her, however, about Barty, and her own family history, Lucius shed a few tears. His tears scared Narcissa, they told her how serious this was. Lucius was a smart man, he knew more about the disease than Narcissa did, he knew how likely it would be that their child would be born with it.

He was silent as they sat together in their bed, he didn't look at her and her heart fell. Did he blame her for this? He had every right to do so, it was through her family, in her genetics, it was her-

'Stop it,' Lucius said weakly, looking at her with red, bloodshot eyes, 'this is not your fault, you cannot change your genetics, Narcissa.'

Narcissa looked at him with tears in her eyes, 'But I am the reason for this, Lucius. If you had married someone else, someone better-'

'No,' Lucius said gently, he held her hand in his, 'Narcissa, you and Almina both have an ancestor with the disease. A Black, and a Crouch, do you have any idea how many other families you are linked with? The Potters, the Longbottoms, the Crabbes, the Prewetts, the Rosiers, the Bulstrodes, the Macmillans, the Yaxleys, the Flints…it would not have mattered who I married Narcissa, this would always have been a risk.'

Narcissa sighed as he held her in his arms, 'What do we do now, Lucius?'

'We wait, and we pray that when our son is born he is free of the disease,' Lucius said honestly.

'And if he has it?' Narcissa asked, the feeling of dread setting in.

'Then we deal with that as it happens,' Lucius said, kissing his wife on the forehead and trying to remain strong for her.

* * *

The months dragged by, and Narcissa found herself dreading her due date. When July finally rounded the corner and the days ticked by she got more and more nervous. Almina had been supportive, and Narcissa had been supporting her too as Barty learned to deal with his illness. He was still only a baby, but Almina had grown very protective over him and never let him out of her sight in case he hurt himself.

On the 10th of July Narcissa went into labour, and Lucius tried not to panic as he got them to St. Mungo's and floo-ed Almina and Pollux. Almina immediately went into the delivery room and Lucius and Pollux stayed together in the waiting room. They were both praying that the baby would be born healthy.

After a fairly long labour they were allowed in, and Lucius smiled, despite his worries, when he saw Narcissa lying in the hospital bed, looking exhausted, yet still beautiful somehow. She was holding a little boy in her arms, and with blonde hair and blue eyes he looked incredibly like them both, and he also looked very healthy. However, Barty had looked healthy and then things had gone terribly wrong.

Lucius sat down by her bed, kissing her on the forehead, 'you did great,' he said, pushing her sweat soaked hair away from her face.

Narcissa smiled half-heartedly at him, and Lucius frowned, 'What's wrong?'

'The Healers checked, as soon as he was born since we knew there was a risk,' Almina said weakly.

'He has the disease, Lucius,' Narcissa choked out.

'How bad is it?' Lucius asked, looking into the eyes of the child and trying to keep tears from coming to his own eyes.

'Severe,' Narcissa whispered, 'like Barty, they don't think he'll make it past 5 years of age.'

A sad silence overcame the room, and that moment which was supposed to be happy was filled with sorrow.

'What are you going to name him?' Pollux asked, in an attempt to break the silence.

'Abraxas?' Lucius suggested, trying to hold himself together for the sake of his wife.

'Abraxas Cygnus Malfoy,' Narcissa said quietly, and Lucius nodded, taking his hand in hers.

'We'll do the best we can, Narcissa,' he promised her, 'we'll do all we can to keep him safe.'

* * *

The days passed, and the weeks passed, and the years passed. As Barty and Abraxas grew into toddlers their Mothers grew even more anxious about them getting hurt. They lived in the constant shadow of the fact their children would never survive their childhood, but they tried to give them all the love and care in the world while they could.

Tragedy struck first for the Malfoy family in January, 1979. Abraxas was 1 year and 6 months old, and he had been doing as well as he could considering his illness. One morning Narcissa had woken up and when she went to wake Abraxas found him having some sort of seizure. She had taken him immediately to St. Mungo's where Healers had saved his life but he had been left permanently brain damaged by the incident. He would never speak, and probably never walk either. It had been devastating for both Narcissa and Lucius, but it presented further problems.

'Narcissa, we have to hide this!' Lucius hissed one evening when Abraxas was asleep, 'the Dark Lord cannot find out! He does not approve of children who are not pure, who are not the best of the species!'

'So what, Lucius?' Narcissa snapped, she was tired and fed up.

'So he will kill Abraxas if he finds out about his condition,' Lucius hissed, 'who knows?'

'Only Pollux and Almina, and they have vowed not to tell a soul,' Narcissa replied, now realising the very real threat posed by this dark lord.

'Then it must remain that way,' Lucius said under his breath, 'you must promise me this.'

'I promise,' Narcissa agreed, breathing a deep sigh of fear. The war was now at its height, Muggles and Muggle-borns were dying, and the Ministry were trying in vain to fight back. She lived in constant fear, as did Lucius, and now this added to their fear all the more.

A few months passed, but then in March disaster hit the family once more when a man in a cloak turned up at the door. He demanded to be let in, and then only lowered the hood of his cloak when he was inside the house. Narcissa immediately recognised him and sighed in relief when she saw him, 'You scared me Rodolphus, are you here for Lucius? Is Bella alright?'

Rodolphus smiled, 'Bella is fine,' he assured her, 'I'm just here to see Lucius.'

'Is it about business concerning…him?' Narcissa asked fearfully as Rodolphus walked towards the stairs.

'It's nothing you need to worry about Narcissa,' Rodolphus said kindly, 'is he in his study?'

Narcissa nodded, 'He might have fallen asleep at his desk, but he's definitely in there.'

Rodolphus smiled and thanked her then made his way up the stairs to the first floor where Lucius's study was. Narcissa thought nothing of this and returned to the drawing room without a thought. She realised after around half an hour that Rodolphus was taking an awful long time talking to Lucius and curiosity got the better of her.

She made her way up the stairs and pushed open the door to Lucius's study, she frowned, he was alone with his head resting on his desk as he snored quietly.

'Lucius,' she said as she gave him a nudge.

He woke up and frowned, 'Oh, Merlin, I fell asleep again. Sorry love.'

'It's okay,' Narcissa said offhandedly, 'did Rodolphus leave already? I didn't hear him come through the entrance hall.'

Lucius's frown deepened, 'Rodolphus? What are you talking about? He hasn't been here.'

'But he came in…and came upstairs to find you, around half an hour ago,' Narcissa said, not understanding what was going on at all.

Lucius's eyes widened in fear and he got to his feet, running down the hallway to the room where Abraxas slept. Narcissa was hot on his heels, and the shout of anger and pain that he emitted when he saw the sight inside the room would stay with her for the rest of her life.

Abraxas lay in his cot, his eyes wide and unseeing, he had been murdered with the killing curse.

* * *

The funeral was a quiet affair with only Almina and Pollux present. They kept it as quiet as possible to avoid the papers finding out, and at the end of the day when they went home they felt numb and empty.

Lucius and Narcissa didn't talk to each other for about a week after the funeral. They both blamed themselves, but Narcissa also thought Lucius blamed her. While at the same time Lucius was certain Narcissa blamed him.

Then, on Monday night, a week and a half after Abraxas's death somebody appeared at the door to the Manor. Narcissa let the cloaked figure in but at wand point, when the cloaked figure dropped her hood Narcissa lunged at her, 'How dare you have the nerve to show up here!?'

Bellatrix looked pale, and like Lucius, a shadow of her former-self, 'Cissy-'

'Don't call me that!' Narcissa all but screamed, 'you are the reason my son is dead!'

'He was damaged Narcissa,' Bellatrix said, 'we were helping you-'

'Helping me? Your Husband killed my son! His own nephew!' Narcissa screamed, and by now her shouts had brought Lucius to her side.

'He would have died anyway, it was for his own good,' Bellatrix said in the same condescending voice she had spoken to Narcissa with since she was a child, 'the Dark Lord ordered it-'

'Of course he did!' Narcissa spat, 'and you and your sick husband do everything he says! You are psychopaths, just like he is!'

'Narcissa!' Lucius snapped, 'don't say such things about the Dark Lord!'

'She isn't in her right mind Lucius,' Bellatrix said knowingly, 'it's the grief.'

'Oh I wonder why we're grieving!' Narcissa shouted, 'perhaps because our son is dead, thanks to you!'

'But Cissy, I'm your sister…family looks out for each other,' Bellatrix said softly.

'You are _not _my sister!' Narcissa hissed, 'Andromeda is more of a sister to me than you are! Get _out _of my house! Get back to your sick husband, and the Dark Lord you admire so much!'

Something seemed to break in Bellatrix's eyes and with a spell more powerful than she had ever mustered before Narcissa pushed her sister from the house and slammed the door on her face, breathing heavily.

Lucius placed a hand on her shoulder, and said gently, 'What you said, that was risky. You are lucky Bellatrix took it to be grief, or else we could be in trouble.'

'We're already in trouble,' Narcissa hissed, 'because you are too much of a coward to do the right thing! He gave the order that killed our son Lucius, stop this nonsense and do the right thing!'

'It isn't that easy-'

'If you don't do this, then you aren't the man I thought you were when I married you,' Narcissa snapped as she stormed away from her Husband.

* * *

The day after the late night confrontation, Lucius disappeared early in the morning and did not return to Malfoy Manor until well past midnight. He climbed into bed next to his wife, he knew she was awake but she didn't move or say a word to him. They had barely spoken since Abraxas's death.

'I met with James Potter today.'

He wasn't met with a response, but Lucius continued, 'he's part of an organisation opposing the Dark Lord…I told him everything that I know about the Dark Lords movements, and I agreed to tip him off when I know about any attacks that will be made. He told me to make sure I'm discreet, if the Dark Lord finds out we will both be killed.'

Narcissa turned around, she was crying, 'Lucius…'

'I did the right thing, for you,' Lucius said as his voice broke, 'I am a coward Narcissa, but I cannot follow that man after what he did to our son.'

Narcissa nodded, unable to find words as she pulled him close to her.

* * *

Tragedy struck for the Greengrass family a few months later in May, 1979. Barty was 2 and a half years old, Almina wore herself grey worrying about him and watching him constantly. However, this particular day she had been forced to leave him alone for a few moments, he was inside his cot sleeping and she had felt uncontrollably sick. She rushed to the bathroom next door and emptied the contents of her stomach violently. Feeling truly rotten she dragged herself back into his room, she couldn't have been gone more than 5 minutes but in that time he had fallen and hit his head on the side of the cot.

They rushed him to St. Mungo's, but the fall had caused a brain haemorrhage and he had passed away. Almina had been distraught, and the funeral which had taken place three days later had been very small. Narcissa and Lucius had been among the very few people in attendance.

'What did we ever do to deserve this?' Almina asked as she knelt in front of her son's grave.

'I don't know,' Narcissa said honestly.

'We seem to have a grave misfortune upon us,' Almina said miserably, 'sometimes I wonder if we'll ever be happy.'

'We will be,' Narcissa said, taking Almina's hand, 'we just have to try again. I know having another child after losing one seems like the hardest thing in the world to do, but maybe it will heal these holes we have inside us.'

'Maybe,' Almina said quietly.

Narcissa frowned, 'What is it?'

'The reason I…when I left him alone, I swear Narcissa it couldn't have been for more than 5 minutes,' Almina said as fresh tears rolled down her cheeks, 'but I had no choice, I ran to the bathroom and threw up…I have done every morning since.'

Narcissa's eyes widened, 'Do you think…'

Almina nodded and sighed, 'I can only pray it's a girl. I can't go through this again.'

Narcissa nodded, tightening her grip on her friends' hand. They sat there in silence for a while, mourning the loss of their two sons.

* * *

Life moved on, but it wasn't easy to adjust. Almina's pregnancy progressed well, and she was relieved when she found out at her 3 month appointment in July that she was expecting a girl. It lightened both her mood and Pollux's, and despite the war raging and the death toll rising they had something to look forward to rather than dread. Even at this point, Pollux still hadn't joined the Death Eaters, despite the pressure they had put on him to do so.

Lucius's double life had been putting the pressure on both he and Narcissa. Things so far had been fairly simple at least. He had mostly been tipping off the light about attacks, and he had managed to save the lives of the Bone's family by doing so. He kept his life secret, and continued to meet with James Potter and relay information.

The summer passed, and the war reached unthinkable heights. Just when it didn't seem like it could get any worse, it did. Lucius had been pulled into more and more attacks, and he kept promising that he never killed anyone. Narcissa believed him, she just hoped she wasn't foolish in doing so.

Narcissa started to get sick in October, she put it down to a bad cold she had caught, but when the sickness didn't stop she realised it might be something more. She didn't tell Lucius that she had an appointment at St. Mungo's, she went instead with Almina who was by this point 6 months pregnant herself.

She was nervous as the Healer did the standard charms, but Almina was there as her moral support and she appreciated it.

'Well Mrs. Malfoy,' the Healer said with a smile, 'you are pregnant, 3 months along to be precise. I can tell you the sex if you'd like?'

Narcissa nodded, nervously awaiting to find out.

'It's a boy,' the Healer said, and Narcissa's face fell.

'Oh,' the Healer said with a confused frown, 'did you want a girl?'

Almina sighed, 'It's just…her last son had the Pureblood disease,' she told the Healer.

'Oh, I'm sorry Mrs. Malfoy,' the Healer said, 'I'm afraid I can't tell you whether or not this baby will have the disease. However I can tell you it is highly unlikely that it will, a child born directly after one with the disease tends to be healthy, its very rare for it to happen in that circumstance. The first born often has the disease, and often so does the 3rd or 4th child. Surveys show that the healthiest children are usually the 2nd and 5th.'

Narcissa smiled very slightly, 'I appreciate that, but I'll still worry.'

'I understand,' the Healer said, 'but please try not to, it might make the baby upset and cause you to go into labour prematurely.'

Narcissa nodded and thanked the Healer, then she left with Almina.

* * *

'Lucius, I need to talk to you…' Narcissa said that night after her Husband came home from a late night attack on a Muggle town.

Lucius sighed as he sat down in an armchair, 'What is it?'

Narcissa bit her lip, the last time she had been pregnant he had noticed. However with the war, and his double life he had been so tired and preoccupied all the time that he hadn't been noticing much.

'I'm pregnant Lucius, I had my 3 month appointment today.'

Lucius looked up in surprise, 'Pregnant?'

Narcissa nodded, 'I didn't realise until that bad cold didn't go away. I've been so caught up in all that's happening I didn't even realise…'

Lucius got to his feet and walked towards her, 'And is everything okay? Is it healthy?'

Narcissa nodded, smiling weakly, 'It's another boy…'

His face fell, as hers had earlier.

'The Healer said it's highly unlikely he'll have the disease, Lucius,' Narcissa said gently, 'he said the 2nd and 5th born children are usually the healthiest.'

There was a glimmer of hope in Lucius's eyes, 'He's going to be okay?'

'He should be,' Narcissa said with a slight smile.

Lucius smiled slightly too as he wrapped his arms around her, 'I love you, Narcissa,' he mumbled into her hair, 'and I want this to be over.'

'Me too,' Narcissa whispered as she relaxed into his embrace.

* * *

Narcissa and Lucius spent Christmas with Pollux and Almina again that year. Almina spent most of the day sleeping since she was due to give birth in a week or two, and Narcissa of course couldn't drink. It was a nice break from the world, an escape from all that was going on around them.

They didn't ring in the New Year, because they didn't believe all the reports in the Prophet about how this would be it, 1980 would be the year that Voldemort would be defeated. Lucius threw it in the fire and said it was nonsense.

On the 3rd of January, 1980, Almina went into labour. Narcissa couldn't be with her because she herself was pregnant and it wasn't safe. So this time she waited outside with Pollux and Abraxas. Pollux paced nervously and when they were finally allowed into the room it was to a beautiful sight.

Almina looked absolutely exhausted, but she was smiling too as she held her little baby girl, 'she's 100% healthy,' she said happily.

Pollux grinned as he sat down next to his wife and kissed her on the cheek, 'She's beautiful...you're beautiful.'

Almina smiled, gently kissing his lips, 'Narcissa, Lucius. Be her Godparents?'

'You don't even have to ask, Mina,' Narcissa said softly, kissing her friend on the forehead.

Almina smiled, 'She's perfect, isn't she?'

'She's beautiful,' Narcissa said, looking at the blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl, 'she looks just like you Mina.'

'I think we should call her Daphne,' Almina said with a yawn.

'Daphne?' Pollux asked in surprise, 'after your sister?'

'You have a sister?' Lucius asked in surprise.

'I did,' Almina said, 'she died when she was young, but she looks just like my sister…'

'Well I like the name Daphne, it's a nice name,' Pollux said, 'and it suits her.'

'What about her middle name?' Narcissa asked.

'Well we're not giving her my Mother's name, I think Lucretia sounds like the name of a Vampire,' Almina said, making Narcissa chuckle.

'How about Lysandra?' Pollux asked, 'for my Grandmother?'

Almina nodded thoughtfully, 'Daphne Lysandra Greengrass…I like it.'

'Then that's her name,' Pollux said, kissing his baby daughter on the forehead, 'welcome to the world, Daphne.'

* * *

6 months passed, and Daphne looked more and more like Almina with every passing day. Her eyes were the same ice-blue and her hair the same pure blonde, she was beautiful and healthy, and she was developing fast.

Almina had been trying to avoid getting ahead of herself. She knew Narcissa's son would be in the same Hogwarts year as her daughter, she knew they would grow up together, but she didn't want to put these dreams in Narcissa's head. If this second son also had the Pureblood disease it would just devastate her all the more.

When Narcissa did go into labour, 6 months later on the 2nd of June, Almina was by her side holding her hand. Pollux had to stay with Daphne, so Lucius paced the waiting room alone for the first time as he waited for news. The birth was long, longer than her last, and longer than both of Almina's. Lucius grew more and more anxious as time passed and when he was finally let into the room he practically ran to his wife.

She smiled broadly at him when he walked in, despite her exhaustion. He took it as a good sign as he looked at his son, a beautiful little blonde-haired boy with grey-ish blue eyes.

'He's healthy,' Narcissa said, 'he doesn't have the disease, he's healthy Lucius!'

Lucius couldn't contain his joy as he sat down by her side, kissing her softly, 'He's healthy,' he breathed.

Narcissa nodded, her smile faltering slightly, 'but there is another thing…the birth was bad.'

Lucius frowned, 'Are you okay?'

'I'll be fine,' Narcissa said, 'I'll just need a few more days in hospital, but I can't have anymore children.'

Lucius smiled somewhat sadly, 'Well it's a shame he won't have any siblings, but at least we have him now, and that's all that matters.'

'He'll have siblings,' Almina said with a smile, 'he'll grow up with Daphne.'

Narcissa smiled at her best friend, 'Speaking of that…will you be his Godparents, you and Pollux?'

'Of course we will,' Almina said, 'I don't even have to ask Pollux to know he'll agree.'

Narcissa smiled, feeling like the happiest person in the world as she looked from her son to her husband, 'Lucius, I think we should break from tradition.'

Lucius smiled slightly, 'What do you want to call him?'

'I don't want to name him after a family member,' Narcissa said, 'I want to name him Draco.'

Almina smiled knowingly, as did Lucius, 'For the dragon star.'

'Dragons are strong, they are survivors,' Narcissa said, not taking her eyes off of her son, 'just like he is.'

'Draco it is then,' Lucius said, 'shall we give him a middle name?'

Narcissa nodded, slipping her hand into her Husbands, 'Do you have any suggestions?'

'Abraxas,' Lucius said quietly, 'for his Grandfather, and his brother.'

Narcissa got a little teary, but she nodded, 'Draco Abraxas Malfoy…' she whispered.

'It sounds right,' Lucius said.

'It sounds perfect,' Narcissa agreed as she kissed her son on the head and he shut his eyes, nestling into her to go to sleep, 'hello, baby Draco.'

_**End of Part 1 **_

_**A.N: I'm aware that Cygnus is supposed to live until 1992 but I sort of needed to kill him off because I couldn't be bothered writing him into the story...The Pureblood Disease is based on the 'Royal Disease' Haemophilia, I watched a documentary about it and I figured it worked for the story. Hope you enjoyed part 1! Part 2 will be uploaded shortly! :)**_

_**Thanks for reading!**_


	2. Part 2

**There's No Life After You**

**Part 2**

The bliss of having a beautiful, healthy little boy didn't last as long as Narcissa and Lucius would have liked. The war was beginning to turn even more in the favour of Voldemort, and it looked like he was going to win. It was a thought that terrified Lucius and Narcissa as much as it terrified the Ministry and those on the side of the light. Draco was only two months old when things took a slightly odd turn however.

One night in August, 1980 Lucius got home looking quite haggard and tired, Narcissa could immediately tell something was wrong.

'Lucius…'

He sank into an armchair, 'A prophecy has been made, by Sybil Trelawney, the seer.'

'And?' Narcissa asked, a panic setting in.

'Severus Snape heard part of the prophecy and told the Dark Lord about it,' Lucius said darkly, 'it spoke of a boy born at the end of July whose parents had defied the Dark Lord three times. He is said to be the only one who can defeat the Dark Lord, for good.'

Narcissa frowned, 'Who is this boy?'

'One of two babies,' Lucius said with a sigh, 'Harry, the child James Potter just had…and Neville, the child of Frank and Alice Longbottom.'

'Well surely the one to defeat him is Neville,' Narcissa reasoned, 'he is a Pureblood after all. Harry must be a Half-blood.'

'The Dark Lord believes that the child is Harry,' Lucius said, 'the reason I am home so late, is because I warned James and Lily.'

'What are they doing?' Narcissa asked, 'and how did you contact them?'

'Through Harry's Godfather,' Lucius said, 'and I believe, if they take my advice they will go into hiding under a fidelius charm.'

Narcissa sighed, 'Merlin, that poor boy can't be much younger than Draco…who is Harry's Godfather, Lucius?'

'Your cousin,' Lucius said honestly, 'Sirius Black. I think that connection may have been the sole reason he trusted me.'

Narcissa frowned, and Lucius added, 'I am not the only spy among the Death Eaters Narcissa.'

'There are more?' Narcissa asked in surprise.

'One more,' Lucius said solemnly, 'Severus Snape, if you recall he had a certain fondness for James's wife while they were at Hogwarts.'

'Yes, I remember him following her around,' Narcissa said offhandedly, 'why does that make him a spy?'

'He overheard the prophecy and told the Dark Lord, but then he realised that it could be about Lily's son. I followed him, he met with Dumbledore and told him, he begged Dumbledore to keep the Potter's safe,' Lucius said.

'Well I hope they don't rely on him too much,' Narcissa said darkly, 'Dumbledore is more often than not only looking for what he can gain in a situation.'

'I did warn your cousin that Dumbledore's motives may not be exactly as they appeared,' Lucius admitted, 'my advice was to make someone who the Dark Lord would not expect to be their secret keeper.'

'So not someone close to them?' Narcissa asked, 'how could they then make it someone they trust?'

'Someone they trust, but not someone they were knowingly incredibly close with,' Lucius said, 'I advised them to make one of the Longbottoms their secret keeper.'

Narcissa smiled slightly, 'I hope they heed your warning, Lucius.'

'They have no reason to trust me,' Lucius admitted, 'but if they place their trust in the wrong person then nothing I do will be of any help to them…'

Narcissa nodded, placing her hand in his, 'Come to bed, Lucius.'

* * *

A couple of months later Lucius stormed into the house in a rage about the fact that the Potters had not heeded his advice and had instead made Peter Pettigrew their secret keeper. Lucius was convinced that he would be captured and spill the secret to Voldemort so he made sure to stay on top of it.

As it was nothing happened, and Christmas came and went. It was the children's first Christmas, and Daphne who was now nearly one year old was stumbling around the house and saying the odd word, one of which was a mumbled attempt at Draco. They had a nice Christmas, despite the war around them showing no signs of easing off.

At New Year there was a small party at the Greengrass residence, but nothing particularly large. A week into January Almina appeared at Malfoy Manor and smiled sheepishly at Narcissa.

'What have you done?' Narcissa asked in amusement as she walked in with Daphne who would be one year old in a matter of days.

'Well, the New Year's party,' Almina said as she bit her lip, 'got a little…wild later at night.'

Narcissa raised an eyebrow at her best friend, 'What are you telling me, Mina?'

Almina chuckled, 'After the events of New Year's Eve, there's a high chance you're going to be a Godmother for a second time.'

Narcissa laughed and said, 'Right, thanks for the warning.'

Almina laughed, 'We didn't want another, because Daphne is healthy and we're terrified of having a boy…nothing could come of it, but we'll see.'

A few days later there was a small gathering for Daphne's 1st birthday at Greengrass Manor. Normally any Pureblood children around the same age of importance would be invited but because of the war it was just the Malfoys, and Draco got on well with Daphne despite the 6 month age gap.

2 months later Almina showed up at the door again, this time bearing news ('I'm pregnant!'). Narcissa prayed for her that it would be another girl, she and Pollux didn't even care about the lack of an heir anymore. They just wanted healthy children who would make it to adulthood.

In March she had her 3 month appointment, and at the end of it she showed up at the Manor bearing a grin, 'It's another girl!'

Narcissa hugged her and congratulated her, smirking slightly, 'You know, Mina…Lucius and I have been discussing a marriage contract.'

Almina raised an eyebrow, 'Have you?'

'It works out rather well, actually,' Narcissa admitted, 'because the contract was going to be for a male Malfoy to marry a female Greengrass, and since you'll have two girls and we have Draco…'

Almina smiled, 'I think that's a wonderful idea. Has Lucius agreed to sign it?'

'Not yet,' Narcissa admitted, 'but he will. Do you suppose Pollux will agree?'

Almina smirked, 'I'll get through to him,' she promised.

Narcissa chuckled, 'We are the driving force behind the politics of Pureblood families, the 'trophy' wives.'

'Oh, of course we are,' Almina chuckled, 'but our Husbands would _never _admit it!'

* * *

As spring became summer Voldemort began to get erratic, and over-confident, and the tide of the war was turning in the favour of the light. However, by Draco's 1st birthday on the 2nd of June things were looking bad again after an attack on the Prewett's hit the press.

Draco's birthday, like Daphne's had been, was a small affair. Only Almina, Pollux and Daphne were there. Almina was now heavily pregnant, and was due to give birth on the 16th of October. Draco was now talking and walking, and smiling and flying on a small broomstick Pollux had gotten him for his birthday. He was healthy and perfect, and probably very spoiled because of that.

After his son's birthday Lucius got drawn in to a long mission, and he was gone for a month. While he was away the McKinnon family was murdered in its entirety. The two elderly parents, the two 20-something children Marlene and Matthew, along with their respective partners. The worst part, or at least the part that hit Narcissa hard was the fact that Marlene's 6 month old child had not been spared from the attack.

Lucius returned at the beginning of July, and he did not bring good news with him.

'The Dark Lord suspects Pettigrew to be the spy,' Lucius said darkly, 'I could not say anything to draw him away from the idea without drawing suspicion to us, and I will not risk our safety. Not now that we have Draco.'

Narcissa nodded her agreement, all Lucius had ever done was to protect his family and she admired that trait in him.

'So, what are you going to do?' Narcissa asked.

'I'm going to tell them that he suspects,' Lucius said, 'but as of yet he hasn't tracked Pettigrew down so there is some hope.'

'What did your mission entail?' Narcissa asked.

Lucius frowned, 'You don't want to know,' he assured her.

'Did you kill anyone?' Narcissa asked quietly.

'No,' Lucius said honestly, 'but all the same, I did some things I regret.'

Narcissa sighed, but nodded in resignation.

* * *

The war seemed lost as the next few months wore on, and in September Death Eaters showed up at Greengrass Manor and attacked Pollux, tragedy looked set to strike the family once more. The shock of the attack sent Almina into premature labour, and Pollux himself was rushed into St. Mungo's.

Narcissa and Draco uplifted Draco from his bed, and took Daphne with them as they rushed to St Mungo's. They awaited news on their close friends anxiously in the waiting room. By this point after all they had gone through together Almina and Pollux were practically family to Narcissa and Lucius.

They heard about Pollux first, they couldn't see him yet, but he was recovering. He wouldn't suffer any permanent damage, apart from muscle ache from the cruciatus curse that had been used on him multiple times.

As soon as they had news on Pollux, Narcissa went into the room where Almina was giving birth. Almina sighed in relief when she saw her, and Narcissa sat by her side.

'Pollux is okay, he's going to recover just fine,' Narcissa assured her friend, and Almina visibly relaxed.

Half an hour later Almina had given birth to a second daughter, and she was exhausted, 'I think we'll name her Astoria, if Pollux agrees,' she admitted, 'his Mother was called Astoria.'

Narcissa smiled, as Lucius entered the room, pushing Pollux in a wheelchair. Pollux grinned weakly when he saw his wife and their newborn daughter. Daphne was in Lucius's arm, she had been checked over after the attack but apart from mild shock she was fine and the now 1 ¾ year old was fast asleep. Lucius lay her down on the sofa and joined his friends.

The newborn baby girl had the same ice blue eyes of her Mother, but unlike Daphne, her hair wasn't blonde. It was dark brown, like her Fathers.

'What are we going to name her?' Pollux asked, he looked tired and drained, but besides that he was okay.

'I thought Astoria,' Almina said, 'for your Mother.'

Pollux smiled, 'Yes…Astoria, it suits her.'

'Callidora…for a middle name?' Almina suggested, 'for my Grandmother.'

'Astoria Callidora Greengrass it is,' Pollux said as he kissed the girl on the head, 'welcome to the world, Astoria.'

* * *

Pollux, Almina and Astoria were discharged from St. Mungo's within a few days. Narcissa and Lucius had been watching Daphne while they were all in hospital.

As September turned to October Voldemort got closer to Pettigrew, and Lucius's anxiety grew. He was now in regular contact with Sirius in secret about the situation but Sirius was convinced that Pettigrew would not betray the Potters, even under threat of death.

October wore on, and then on Halloween the thing that everyone was so worried about, happened. Voldemort found Pettigrew, and Lucius happened to be on duty when he did. Lucius, in fact, was so privileged, he happened to be one of the three Death Eaters who went with Voldemort to confront Pettigrew.

Exactly as Lucius had suspected, Pettigrew very quickly spilled everything to Voldemort under threat of death and a Muggle was pulled off the street. Pettigrew murdered the Muggle, and had the dark mark burned into his arm as he sobbed.

Lucius's stomach was turning, but he kept it all inside as Voldemort smirked, his pale face shining in the moonlight and his red eyes glinting wickedly, 'I will go to the Potters and finish this once and for all.'

'Do you require assistance, my lord?' Lucius asked in what he hoped was a neutral tone.

Voldemort shook his head, 'No, Lucius. Return to your family, I will deal with this.'

Lucius nodded and spun on the spot, apparating home because he knew Voldemort would track him to ensure he didn't go straight to the Potters. He knew that Voldemort would take his time, so this gave Lucius the chance to put his emergency plan into action.

He told Narcissa to take Draco and go to Greengrass Manor, if he failed Voldemort would surely go looking for his wife and son. He then floo-ed to the home of Frank and Alice Longbottom.

'Malfoy!' Alice objected as he walked into their home.

'He's fine Alice!' Frank said, pushing his wife's wand out of her hand, 'he's helping us.'

'He knows where the Potters are,' Lucius said darkly, looking directly at Frank, 'Take your son and leave, put yourself under a fidelius charm. Do not come out until the Death Eaters have been caught, they will come after you, and your son.'

Alice nodded, and Frank frowned, 'We can't run away, we're Aurors-'

'No, Frank!' Alice said, a fire burning in her eyes, 'first and foremost right now, we are parents and we are protecting our son!'

Lucius nodded, and swiftly walked through the house, putting himself under a disillusionment charm before walking out onto the street.

He made his way towards the Potter house. Until Pettigrew had betrayed the Potters Lucius hadn't been able to confirm their location, but he had suspected that it was within the vicinity of the Longbottoms house, and he had been proven right.

He had not long left the door of the Longbottom house when a huge green flash lit up the night sky, it was followed by an almighty bang, and his heart fell. He was too late, he ran towards the sound, and he soon found the house, with a huge hole in the roof. The bang was causing his ears to ring, but he could hear another faint sound, that of a child crying.

Through the roof he saw something that looked like smoke billowing away from the house, but then he saw a face inside the smoke, and red eyes…Voldemort.

A pop distracted him, and he saw Sirius arrive at the door.

'Sirius!' he hissed, trying not to blow his disguise.

'Malfoy!' Sirius hissed back, 'what the hell have you done? Where are James and Lily? Where is Harry?'

'I was too late,' Lucius whispered, 'the Dark Lord got here first…'

Sirius opened his mouth to shout, but Lucius put his hand over it, 'Shut up and listen, can you hear a baby crying? The explosion caused my ears to ring, I'm not sure if it is a child…'

Sirius was silent, and then they heard it. A clear cry, that of a baby. Forgetting about Lucius, Sirius ran into the house and Lucius followed him. The sight that they were met with was not a pretty one, lying on the stairs with wide unseeing eyes was James. Sirius choked back a sob as he walked up the stairs into the room with the hole blown into the roof, Harry's room.

In front of his cot, her eyes open and wide with fear, was Lily, from the way she was positioned it looked like she had thrown herself in front of the curse for Harry.

The only small comfort was Harry, he was crying and clearly distraught with a strange scar on his forehead. But he was alive.

Sirius picked him up, tears falling from his eyes at the tragedy. Lucius remained silent, aware he had no place here. He should have been faster, then he would have prevented this from happening.

'Pettigrew did this,' Sirius said darkly, 'and I'll kill him for it!'

'No, you won't,' Lucius said firmly.

'Yes, I will!' Sirius spat.

'No, you won't,' Lucius hissed, 'you will look after Harry! As his Godfather, he is now your responsibility! Nobody knows you weren't the Secret Keeper, Ministry officials will arrive soon and if they find you, they will throw you in prison! You know what Crouch is like.'

Sirius faltered for a moment, and Lucius said firmly, 'Leave and go into hiding, Narcissa is at Greengrass Manor with our son, he's around Harry's age.'

'Why should I trust you?' Sirius asked darkly, 'you let this happen to my best friends.'

'No, your supposed best friend let this happen,' Lucius said under his breath, 'Greengrass Manor is heavily protected, and the Greengrass family are neutral. Attacking them would be a very bad move on behalf of the Death Eaters, go there, now!'

Sirius stared at Lucius for a moment then nodded, he spun on his heel and vanished from the house, taking Harry with him.

Lucius followed him, apparating just as a man on a flying bike appeared in the sky above the house. He apparated to his own Manor, and walked into the dark, cold, empty house. He then floo-ed to a halfway house that he had set up in case of an emergency and from there he made his way to the drawing room of Greengrass Manor.

The scene was slightly chaotic. The drawing room was large, but all the same it was very full, and full of noise.

Closest to the fire, Narcissa sat in an armchair with Draco on her lap, he looked scared and Lucius understood why. None of the children could sleep through this, so Daphne was sitting at Narcissa's feet, hugging her leg and watching on with confusion. Almina was rocking Astoria as she cried, and Pollux was whispering frantically to Frank Longbottom.

Lucius knew they were friends, and he himself knew Frank well enough. Frank had been a Ravenclaw at Hogwarts, and while Pollux and Lucius had been Slytherins they had all been in the same year and they had all been Prefects. His wife Alice was trying to soothe her son, Neville, who must have been about a year and a half old.

In the middle of it all was Sirius who was pacing back and forth trying to soothe Harry who was screaming at the top of his lungs.

'Lucius!' Pollux exclaimed, ushering him over.

Lucius nodded, kissing his son on the forehead, and his wife on the cheek before moving over to Pollux and Frank.

'They are dead,' Lucius confirmed, 'the Potters are both dead.'

'Black did tell us,' Pollux remarked, 'but why kill the Potters and not the child?'

'He tried,' Lucius said with a frown, 'he survived the killing curse, that is what the scar on his head signifies…I believe.'

'Survived the killing curse?' Pollux asked in disbelief, 'but nobody ever has, and he is only a child.'

Frank sighed, 'We need to move into action quickly.'

Lucius nodded, 'Dumbledore will have arrived to deal with Harry and he will not find him there. We must make it known before it is too late that the secret keeper was Pettigrew, not Sirius.'

'The only way to do that is for a spy in Voldemort's ranks to tell the Ministry,' Pollux pointed out.

'Which is why I am about to leave for the Ministry,' Lucius said.

'Is it true, Lucius?' Frank asked with a frown, 'the rumours that Voldemort is dead?'

'No,' Lucius said darkly, 'after the explosion…I saw a shadow with red eyes leave the house. He is weakened, but not dead. I believe he tried to kill Harry and the curse rebounded on him.'

'But it didn't kill him?' Frank asked, 'surely even he is not invincible.'

'Apparently, he is,' Lucius said darkly, 'I must go, or an innocent man will go to Azkaban for this crime.'

Pollux and Frank both nodded, and Lucius passed Narcissa on his way to the fire. She looked at him with desperation in her eyes, 'Are you leaving again?'

Lucius nodded, 'I have to Narcissa,' he said gently, 'otherwise your cousin will go to prison for a crime he did not commit.'

Narcissa nodded weakly at him, and Draco cuddled in closer to her as Lucius left through the fireplace as quickly as he had come in.

* * *

The Ministry was in chaos, but the moment they received Lucius's statement, the Auror office jumped into action. They trusted him well enough after all the legitimate tip-offs he had given them over the years. They began their search for Pettigrew, and with a list of names he had provided, began to track down the Death Eaters.

For the following days and weeks the press reported about the death of the Potters, and the missing child who was nowhere to be found within the wreckage of the house. There were reports everyday about Death Eaters being caught and sentenced, and Narcissa had no sorrow when two of those names were Bellatrix and Rodolphus Lestrange.

2 weeks after the Potters death, and the apparent disappearance of Voldemort, Sirius had his trial, and Lucius was one of the witnesses. Sirius, along with Frank and Alice had been staying at Greengrass Manor. Narcissa and Draco had stayed there for their own good, but between Ministry business and everything else going on Lucius was hardly around in those two weeks.

Dumbledore arrived to watch Sirius's trial. He sat in the gallery and watched with his hands clasped together as Sirius took his seat in the chair and it gripped his hands and legs so he could not leave.

'Sirius Black…you are tried with the kidnapping of Harry Potter.'

'I am his legal guardian,' Sirius argued, 'I don't see it as kidnapping when he is my Godson.'

'His parents, James and Lily, do name you as Godfather in their will…' the judge, Bartemius Crouch said, 'but what cause do you have for taking him without telling anyone where he was?'

'There were still Death Eaters who believed he was the reason for Voldemort's downfall,' Sirius said simply, 'I took him to Greengrass Manor so I could hide him. I intended to come out of hiding when the last of the Death Eaters had been rounded up.'

'You hid in Greengrass Manor…yet you have no attachments to the Greengrass's,' Crouch said, 'so why there?'

'My cousin was there, and I trust her,' Sirius said, 'and her Husband.'

Barty Crouch frowned, 'That brings us onto our witness, Lucius Malfoy.'

Lucius got to his feet with a polite bow to Crouch, 'I have been passing intel throughout the war to the Ministry. I was asked by the Dark Lord to accompany him when he confronted Peter Pettigrew. Pettigrew then gave the location of the Potters away so I went to the house, hoping to get there before the Dark Lord.'

'But you did not,' Crouch said.

'I did not,' Lucius confirmed, 'I had been there only a few moments when Mr. Black arrived. I advised him to take Harry and hide until the worst of the Death Eaters had been imprisoned, for his safety and for Harry's.'

'And why do you have any amount of concern for the son of James and Lily Potter?' Crouch asked.

'Because I have a son myself, only a year older than Harry,' Lucius began honestly, 'and because when I began to inform as a spy, it was to James Potter, a member of the Order of the Phoenix.'

'Very well Mr. Malfoy,' Crouch said, and with another bow Lucius sat down once more.

'Peter Pettigrew has confessed to manslaughter, through telling He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named the location of the Potters,' Crouch informed Sirius, 'he is sentenced to a lifetime in Azkaban.'

'That's where he deserves to be,' Sirius said darkly, 'he should have died, rather than betray his friends.'

Crouch gave him a sombre nod, 'I acquit you of all charges, Mr. Black. As the legal guardian of the young Mr. Potter, you were indeed free to take him into hiding. This will now have to become public knowledge of course, the wizarding world is very anxious about the location of the boy.'

Sirius nodded, and Crouch added, 'Further to that, I grant you full custody of the child. His Godmother, Marlene McKinnon, perished in the war. He is your responsibility now, Mr. Black.'

Sirius nodded once more, and the chains on his arms and legs loosened. He got to his feet and left the room, smiling weakly at Lucius when he saw him outside, 'Thank you,' he said genuinely.

Lucius only nodded, and Sirius added, 'I never thought you'd become a spy.'

'Nor did I,' Lucius said honestly, 'but when the Dark Lord gave the order to kill my son I decided to do all I could to bring him down.'

'You had another son?' Sirius asked, 'before Draco?'

Lucius nodded, but said no more, and Sirius didn't ask as a tall, imposing figure appeared in the hallway.

'Sirius.'

'Dumbledore,' Sirius said, narrowing his eyes suspiciously at the man.

'Can I have a word with you, privately?' Dumbledore asked politely.

'I think you can say anything you want to say to me in front of Lucius,' Sirius said stubbornly.

Dumbledore frowned, 'I seem to recall you being rivals during your Hogwarts years.'

'Well we aren't in school anymore,' Sirius said, 'and he has done more for Harry and I in the past two weeks than you ever did for James and Lily.'

'Sirius-'

'No, Dumbledore,' Sirius said coldly, 'you were the one who told me I was too obvious, that Voldemort would find me. It was because of that I told them to make Pettigrew their secret keeper.'

'You would have been too obvious,' Dumbledore said gently, 'Peter was the best choice.'

Sirius shook his head angrily, 'No, because I would have died with their secret! I would never have betrayed them.'

'Then we would only have the loss of another in the place of James and Lily,' Dumbledore said reasonably, 'it was all for the greater good.'

'No, it wasn't,' Sirius practically spat, 'if I'd have died it wouldn't have mattered! Everyone I care about is dead anyway, Lily and James would have been able to raise their own son!'

'Narcissa would have cared,' Lucius pointed out, 'just for the record.'

Sirius smiled slightly, he and Narcissa had gotten on well as children, not as well as he had gotten on with Andromeda, but well.

'Sirius, I think you should consider putting Harry in the care of his Muggle relatives,' Dumbledore said, getting down to the point now.

'No,' Sirius said firmly, 'I am his legal guardian, Dumbledore.'

'Do you think it's wise?' Dumbledore asked, 'bringing him up in this world, he'll be famous before he can even talk. Do you really think that will do him any good?'

'It will do him more good than you sending him to those Muggles would,' Sirius said darkly, 'they hate magic, they'd probably try and beat it out of him!'

'But they _are _his blood family,' Dumbledore countered.

'I'm his blood family!' Sirius snapped, 'James was my second cousin through Dorea Black and her marriage to Charlus Potter. That makes Harry my blood family, and Remus and I can care for him just fine. We can keep him grounded, and it's better to teach him how to deal with his fame instead of for him to come into this world at 11 years old with no idea who he is.'

'You want to raise him with a werewolf?' Dumbledore asked with a raised eyebrow, ignoring everything else that Sirius had said.

'You really _are _a manipulative bastard,' Sirius said under his breath, 'you had no qualms with Remus, you let him come to Hogwarts. But when it's inconvenient it's suddenly a problem? Remus _loves _Harry, he will never be around him during transformations.'

'I just think you are making the wrong decision, Sirius,' Dumbledore said, 'you don't know what is right for Harry.'

'Yes, I do,' Sirius said, 'being with me is what's right for him. I am his legal guardian and he isn't going anywhere, this conversation is over, Dumbledore.'

Sirius turned on his heel and left, with Lucius following him. They walked in silence to the atrium, and then Lucius said, 'I warned you.'

'And you were right,' Sirius muttered, 'but he can't do anything about it. I'm Harry's legal guardian.'

Lucius nodded, 'If you had gone to prison however, Harry would have ended up with those Muggles. Are you convinced you made the right decision, now?'

'Yeah,' Sirius agreed with a sigh.

'And, don't worry about Harry growing up without a Mother figure,' Lucius added, 'Narcissa will always be around, we always wanted more children but Draco was…difficult.'

'I appreciate that,' Sirius said honestly, 'and I am grateful for all you did during the war. Now that I've mellowed out slightly I think it may be time to make amends with some members of my family.'

'Narcissa feels the same,' Lucius admitted, 'I believe she is going to try and make amends with Andromeda.'

'That would be good,' Sirius said with a smile, 'at least this war has done something good…I'd forgotten how important family was.'

'Well you have your own little family now that Harry is your responsibility,' Lucius said, patting him on the back, 'you're going to be a natural at this whole parenting thing. That much is clear already.'

'I'm sorry for writing you off as an arsehole, Lucius,' Sirius said honestly.

Lucius chuckled, 'Don't worry about it, until Narcissa agreed to marry me, I was one.'

Sirius laughed and held out a hand to him, 'Well after all that's happened, I think we ought to attempt to be friends.'

Lucius accepted his hand and shook it, 'I agree, through Narcissa, we are family after all.'

'And family ought to stick together,' Sirius said as he dropped the older man's hand.

* * *

'Where are you going to go, Sirius?'

'I'll find somewhere,' Sirius said to Narcissa with a smile, 'I can't encroach on Almina and Pollux anymore.'

'Why not go back to Black Manor?' Narcissa asked her cousin as Harry and Draco played together on the floor.

Sirius sighed, 'I have bad memories of it…'

'We had fun growing up there,' Narcissa said, 'do you remember how me, you and Dromeda used to play pranks on Bellatrix and Regulus?'

Sirius nodded, 'Did you hear about Regulus?'

Narcissa nodded, 'Lucius told me, he was killed by the Dark Lord.'

'I wish you'd stop calling him that, it implies you're a follower of his,' Sirius said with a frown.

'Habit,' Narcissa said sadly, 'what did Regulus do?'

'I don't know,' Sirius said honestly, 'even Lucius doesn't know. He just betrayed Voldemort in some way.'

'I'm sorry,' Narcissa said with a sigh, 'but for what it's worth I think you should consider Black Manor. It's big, and it has a back garden…I know it's rather dark but if you cleaned it up I think it would make a fantastic family home.'

'Clearing it out of dark goods is too difficult a job for me,' Sirius admitted, 'I think I'll have to ask the Ministry to do a job on it first then redecorate when they're done.'

'Will they be able to remove the portrait of Aunt Walburga?' Narcissa asked with a raised eyebrow.

'If they can't I won't move back in,' Sirius retorted and Narcissa chuckled.

* * *

The war was over, but Lucius was uneasy. He knew that Voldemort wasn't dead, but significantly weakened, so much so that he was without a body. It could take years for him to find a host, to come back for good, but all the same it wasn't as over as some people thought it was.

Sirius approached the Ministry and paid for the clean-out of Black Manor, otherwise known as Grimmauld Place. He had lost access to all accounts when he was disowned but now that he was the last direct heir the house and the accounts fell to him. They shouldn't have, but there was a clause in his Father's will, a loophole that the Goblins had found. Sirius didn't care about the fortune, he was just grateful there was now some money available for him to support Harry with.

In the two week period it would take the Ministry to clear out the house, he stayed with Narcissa and Lucius. He felt he had been a burden on Almina and Pollux too long. Frank and Alice had moved back into their house in Godric's Hollow with Neville. They did have claims to Longbottom House, but it was currently occupied by Frank's Mother and they didn't want to live in the same house as her, however big a house it was.

Sirius had never expected to find himself close to Narcissa again, not since she had started courting Lucius Malfoy while he had been at Hogwarts. Then when he had run away and been disowned he had been all the more certain. Yet over the two weeks he spent with her and Lucius they relieved their childhood in a sense, and Sirius didn't object to Lucius now that he saw the true side of him. He learned very quickly the Malfoy façade was just that, a façade, one that Narcissa had very quickly learned to go along with.

When the house was cleaned out, including all Dark objects apart from those in the glass cabinets Sirius had specified to be left alone, he was relieved. They had gotten the portrait of his Mother off the wall, he had to pay them extra however because to do so they had knocked the wall down, removed that whole part of wall and rebuilt it. They had also removed the house-elves heads from the walls and anything stuck up with a permanent sticking charm had been removed and placed in the room it had been removed from.

'Are you going to Black Manor today?' Narcissa asked on a Saturday morning around a month after the end of the war.

'I was going to assess the damage control,' Sirius admitted, 'do you want to come with me?'

'I would like to,' Narcissa said with a smile as Lucius walked into the kitchen holding a copy of the prophet, 'Lucius, would you mind watching Draco and Harry for a couple of hours? I was going to go back to Black Manor with Sirius.'

Lucius smiled and said, 'Of course. That will be a blast to the past for you, won't it? You haven't lived there since we got married.'

Narcissa smiled, 'It will be nice to see it free of dark magic I have to admit.'

Lucius chuckled, 'Go ahead, I'll keep an eye on the boys. In fact, I might let them out the back on their brooms…it's rather nice out there today.'

'Just make sure you use cushioning charms,' Narcissa said.

Lucius smirked, 'I'm not completely incapable, Narcissa.'

Sirius chuckled as Narcissa rolled her eyes at her Husband.

* * *

The Manor was actually a whole lot different just from the removal of a few portraits and the heads of dead house elves. It needed a lot of redecorating, but it would be liveable soon. Sirius just had to work on finding a couple more house elves to keep things running a bit better. One week later he moved into the newly decorated house, all the dark walls were white, the ceilings were white, the floors were wooden and polished, some with rugs laid down on them. Most of the portraits had been locked up in the attic along with the family relics in the glass cabinets, and the family relics that had been found throughout the other rooms. Regulus's room had been cleansed of all its Slytherin-ness, and Sirius had put up some of his old pictures of his friends in his room, but removed all the Gryffindor regalia. The photograph he loved most was on the wall, but Peter Pettigrew had been chopped off the side of it.

There were 8 bedrooms in the house, and once all had been wiped clean of its previous life Sirius changed pretty much all of the furniture and got his new staff of house elves to give everything a good clean. He decided to leave the rooms on the uppermost floor which had belonged to him and Regulus clear. He moved into the master bedroom on the 2nd floor and set up Harry's room in what had been Narcissa's bedroom while they had all lived in the house. That way they were separated by only a bathroom and Sirius was close to Harry. Remus pretty much moved in, and Sirius gave him one of the larger rooms upstairs which had belonged to Druella and Cygnus originally.

For the next few years life moved on, when Voldemort showed no sign of coming back people pushed it from their heads. The children grew together, with Astoria forever feeling left out because she was a year younger than the others. Their birthday parties were typical 'Pureblood' affairs with people like Draco, Neville, Daphne, Hannah Abbott, Susan Bones, and Ernie MacMillan showing up to Harry's birthday parties. Some children who were the known children of Death Eaters were left out, but it was at one of these parties that Sirius was re-united with someone he hadn't seen in a long time.

It was Harry's 5th birthday party and because his birthday was so close to Neville's it was a joint affair. Frank's Mother was still holding on to Longbottom house with a vengeance, so the party was in the back garden of Grimmauld Place. Narcissa had done a lot to restore it, and it was lovely now with flowers growing everywhere and a half-sized Quidditch pitch at the end of the garden (which Sirius had put in).

The usual people were running around the garden with Harry and Neville…Draco, Daphne, Astoria, Hannah, and Ernie. But Susan, who was invited, wasn't here yet.

Narcissa laughed as Sirius opened the door when there was finally a knock at it, she shared a knowing grin with Almina as Sirius's jaw dropped.

'Hello Sirius,' Amelia Bones said with a smile as she walked into the house with Susan holding her hand.

'Amelia,' Sirius said, closing his mouth and putting himself together.

She smirked ever so slightly, 'Susan is my niece, her parents are working together so they asked me to drop her off.'

'Right,' Sirius said.

'You can stay if you like, Amelia,' Narcissa said with a smile, 'all the other adults usually do. We have wine in the kitchen.'

Amelia chuckled, 'That would be great,' she admitted.

'Mina, have you met Amelia?' Narcissa asked Almina.

'No, I don't believe I have,' Almina as she held out her hand, 'Almina Greengrass.'

'Amelia Bones,' Amelia said as she shook her hand, 'I think we vaguely met at Hogwarts, but I was a year above you.'

'Yes, you were in the same year as Lucius and Pollux,' Narcissa recalled.

'Mina will take you through to the garden,' Narcissa said with a smile and Almina and Amelia left.

'Why did you invite her to stay?' Sirius asked with a groan the moment they were out of earshot.

'You need to marry before you turn 30, Sirius,' Narcissa said with a smile, 'and you have a history with Amelia.'

'A history?' Sirius scoffed, 'she rejected me!'

'But you were young and immature then,' Narcissa pointed out, 'look at you now, a responsible Father figure.'

The door opened and somebody barked out a laugh, 'Responsible? Are we talking about the same man, Narcissa?'

Sirius grinned, 'Hey, Remus. You made it!'

'I wasn't missing his birthday,' Remus said with a smile. He looked tired, but that was to be expected since last night had been a full moon, 'Am I the last one here?'

'No, we're still waiting for Dromeda and Dora,' Narcissa said with a smile. She and Andromeda had reconciled not long after the war.

'But you'll never guess who Narcissa here just invited to stay,' Sirius said with a roll of his eyes, 'Amelia Bones.'

Remus laughed, 'Amelia Bones? The Amelia Bones? The only woman to ever resist the irresistible Sirius Black?'

Sirius grumbled, 'The one and only.'

Remus grinned, 'Well, you _do _need to marry before you turn 30 or you lose your fortune.'

'Honestly,' Sirius huffed, 'I'll leave you two to conspire about my bloody marriage prospects. I'm going out to the garden.'

Narcissa and Remus both chuckled as he left, passing Lucius on the way out to the garden. He raised an eyebrow at his wife when he reached her in the hallway, 'What was that about?'

'Amelia Bones is here,' Narcissa said, 'and we suggested Sirius tries to woo her again now he's more mature.'

'I guess he didn't like that idea,' Lucius said in amusement.

'Not at all,' Remus said with a smile, 'he's still bitter about the fact she rejected him. He wasn't used to that.'

Lucius chuckled and said, 'Pollux just sent me in to ask if that was everyone. He and Frank are talking about a Quidditch game.'

'Nearly everyone,' Narcissa said, 'just Dromeda and Dora.'

'Dora's coming?' Lucius asked in surprise, 'I thought she said last year she was sick of being surrounded by babies.'

'I think Dromeda is making her come,' Narcissa said with a chuckle as there was a knock at the door. She answered it, smiling at her dark-haired sister as she walked into the house and hugged Narcissa.

'Hey, Dora,' Narcissa said with a smile to the 12 year old Hufflepuff Nymphadora. Her hair was bright pink, her favourite colour as of late. She was going into 2nd year at Hogwarts after the summer.

'Hello Aunt Narcissa,' Nymphadora said politely.

'Sorry we're a little Cissa,' Andromeda said as Narcissa shut the door behind her, 'I had to try and wrestle this one out of the house.'

Remus smiled slightly, 'Getting to that rebellious stage Dora?'

'I prefer to be called Tonks now,' Nymphadora said as she held her head high.

'Yes,' Andromeda muttered under her breath, 'go with your Aunt Cissa out to the garden please Dora.'

Nymphadora did so, and with a chuckle Lucius followed his wife and niece into the garden, leaving Remus and Andromeda trailing behind.

'How are you, Dromeda?' Remus asked conversationally.

'Busy now that Dora's back for the summer,' Andromeda answered honestly, 'she's rebelling…but I can understand why given what happened to her Father…'

'She seems better than she did two years ago,' Remus assured the woman who he had become close with.

Andromeda sighed, 'Yes, but she doesn't like the fact I went back to using my maiden name. That's why she's calling herself Tonks, I know her Father's death hit her hard, but I had hoped this was just a phase.'

'She'll be fine, Dromeda,' Remus said as they walked out into the sunlit garden, 'just give her time to work through it.'

'Thank you Remus,' Andromeda said with a smile. Remus, who she had met through Narcissa's friendship with Sirius, had been a close friend to her since her Husband Ted had died in an accident two years earlier. Despite the 7 year age gap between them Remus was really quite fond of Andromeda, something which Sirius often teased him for.

* * *

'Nice to see you again, Sirius,' Amelia said over a glass of wine as the children flew around on the Quidditch pitch.

'Is it?' Sirius asked in surprise as he opened a butterbeer, 'I didn't know you had the slightest interest in me.'

'You're still bitter that I reject you, aren't you?' Amelia asked in surprise.

'No, I got over that years ago,' Sirius said offhandedly.

She raised an eyebrow at him, 'You didn't, did you?'

'Well, nobody else ever has rejected me,' Sirius said, 'not that I've been dating lately, it's hard to find time with a 5 year old.'

Amelia smiled slightly, 'It's refreshing, to see you as a responsible Father.'

'I'm not his Father,' Sirius said quietly.

'You're the closest thing he'll ever have to a Father,' Amelia pointed out, their eyes on the children on the pitch.

Sirius hummed thoughtfully, 'It makes you want me, doesn't it?' he asked her with a grin.

She smirked slightly, Amelia had been a Ravenclaw during their days at Hogwarts, but Sirius had often seen Slytherin traits in her.

'I'll take that as a yes,' Sirius said with a grin.

Amelia rolled her eyes, 'And there is the immature guy from school back.'

Sirius chuckled as Harry punched Draco for crashing into his broom. He got to his feet and shouted, 'Oi, Harry James Potter! No punching, you're disqualified mate!'

'But it's my birthday!' Harry objected.

'Don't care!' Sirius said, 'you still broke the rules, off the broom, come on!'

Harry huffily flew to the ground and got off his broom, 'You suck Sirius.'

'You shouldn't have been hitting then,' Sirius said with a pointed look, 'go have a drink, you can go back on in 5 minutes.'

'Okay!' Harry said, running over the table with the food and drinks.

Amelia was still smiling slightly and Sirius smirked a little, he could use this whole responsible Father figure thing to his advantage.

* * *

One year later a wedding took place in the garden of Grimmauld Place between Sirius Black and Amelia Bones. Remus was best man, but he couldn't help but think that in any other circumstance this would be James standing here. Narcissa was smirking in the second row, and the wedding was a lovely, small affair

Time continued to pass and Narcissa and Lucius couldn't quite believe it when the 31st of August, 1991 rolled around. Draco was excited to be going to Hogwarts, he was all packed and ready and in bed far earlier than normal. Lucius and Narcissa were slightly less excited as they lay in bed together.

'It's going to be so quiet without him,' Narcissa said.

Lucius wrapped his arms around her, 'We'll get used to it.'

'It's time like these I wish we could have had more,' Narcissa said quietly.

'I know,' Lucius said softly, 'but he needs to grow up Cissa.'

Narcissa sighed, 'I'm going to be a wreck tomorrow.'

Lucius chuckled and said, 'Of course you are.'

The following morning Lucius and Narcissa took Draco to platform 9 ¾ and as they navigated the platform they found who they were looking for. Or rather Draco did as he rushed over to Harry, Daphne and Neville.

'I knew I would be the last one here!' Draco said, 'my Mother wouldn't stop hugging me.'

Daphne sniggered and Draco blushed as his parents drew nearer to where Alice, Frank, Sirius, Amelia, Pollux and Almina were seeing off their children for their 1st year at Hogwarts.

'Mother, I want to go with Daphne!'

'Not yet Tori,' Almina said to Astoria, 'next year.'

As usual, Astoria huffed at being told she couldn't do something and then two more people snaked through the crowd.

'Hey, Uncle Remus!'

Remus smiled at Harry, 'Hey, Harry. I just came to see you off.'

'Oh, hey Dromeda,' Narcissa said to the woman holding Remus's hand. It had been 5 years since they had begun to see each other, but they hadn't yet married.

The whistle sounded and the parents ushered their kids onto the train, Narcissa hugged her son one last time and Lucius smiled at him, 'Make sure to write to us, Draco.'

'I will Father,' Draco promised as he hopped onto the train, sitting in a compartment with Harry, Daphne and Neville.

The train moved off and they all waved and waited until it was gone. The smoke cleared, and the platform emptied.

'Well things are going to get awfully quiet now,' Narcissa said sadly.

'Yes, they will,' Alice agreed.

'Not for me,' Amelia said in amusement, 'living with Sirius is like constantly having a child around.'

Sirius rolled his eyes, 'I love you too Amelia,' he joked.

The others chuckled and Pollux said, 'Well we still have Tori for another year.'

'I don't even want to be here,' Astoria huffed, 'I want to be at Hogwarts too.'

'You will be soon Tori,' Narcissa said to the dark-haired girl with a smile.

* * *

10 years passed, and by the end of them Narcissa and Lucius were definitely greyer. Between letters from the Headmaster about three-headed dogs, and hospital wing visits after Quidditch matches, their son had definitely had an interesting education.

Despite Daphne and Draco becoming Slytherins, and Harry and Neville becoming Gryffindors, the quartet had remained close friends throughout their years at Hogwarts and beyond.

It was now July, and the garden of Malfoy Manor was in full bloom. It was set up for a wedding and a beautiful one at that.

Narcissa Malfoy was smiling at her Husband as they sat in the front row together, their eyes flitting occasionally to their son who looked even paler than usual.

'Did you ever think you'd see the son of James Potter standing next to our son on his wedding day?' Narcissa asked her husband in a whisper.

Lucius smiled at her, 'No, but then again. I never thought I'd see the day the daughter of Pollux Greengrass married the son of James Potter.'

'It's not unthinkable,' Narcissa said in amusement, 'they are both from famous Pureblood families, and they've liked each other ever since that Yule Ball in their 4th year.'

Lucius smiled, 'Ironic, actually. If Draco had never taken Astoria to the Yule Ball as a friend that year just so she could go, then we might not be here now.'

'We would, because there was a marriage contract between Draco and one of the girls,' Narcissa pointed out, 'but I doubt they would actually have been happy together.'

Lucius smiled and said, 'I take some credit for all of this. I can't help but wonder how things would be different if I hadn't spied during the first wizarding war.'

'Things would be very different,' Narcissa agreed, 'although I can't tell you how.'

Lucius laughed as Harry nudged Draco in the ribs as his face went slightly blue. On Harry's other side Neville sniggered. Draco shot his friends a glare, and Narcissa smiled, 'He looks so handsome, even with the scars.'

'The scars only make him more handsome,' Almina said as she walked by Narcissa and sat down on the other side of the aisle in the front row.

Narcissa smiled, glancing at her son. There were four pink scars running diagonally across his face, and others on his stomach and chest which were currently hidden. He had received them in the final battle of the second wizarding war when a werewolf had attacked him. Voldemort had returned when her son was at the end of his 4th year, and Lucius had not spied for him. His cover had been blown in the first war, so he openly fought for the light, and so did Draco. Their losses in the war hadn't been as heavy as they might otherwise have been. The only one that had really touched them was Andromeda's daughter, Nymphadora who had died in the final battle.

Andromeda and Remus who had finally married were sitting behind them along with Sirius and Amelia. Andromeda and Remus had a son, Cygnus Lyall Lupin, who had just started his 1st year at Hogwarts. Sirius and Amelia had never had children, leaving Harry as his heir in the case of his death.

The music began to play and Narcissa tore her eyes away from Draco who looked the spitting image of his Father with his long blonde hair held back in a ponytail and his grey-blue eyes flitting around the crowd nervously.

Everyone turned around as the beautiful bride walked down the aisle, her dark hair pulled up into a bun, wearing the tiara Narcissa had worn for her own wedding day. She looked beautiful as she glided down the aisle on Pollux's arm. Narcissa and Lucius shared a small smile at the fact Pollux had tears in his eyes, as he had at Daphne's wedding two years before.

Narcissa shed a few tears herself as Astoria walked down the aisle with Daphne holding her train. Andromeda leaned forward and said, 'I'm sorry Cissa, that should have been you at my first wedding.'

Narcissa smiled at her older sister, 'It's alright Dromeda, it was me at your second wedding,' she said, shooting a grin in Remus's direction.

Remus and Lucius both chuckled as Astoria reached Draco and Pollux lifted her veil. He kissed her on the cheek and sat down next to Almina who was a complete emotional wreck already.

Harry shot Daphne a grin as she took her place next to her sister, and then the focus was on Draco and Astoria as they said their vows. Narcissa held onto her Husband's hand throughout the entire ceremony and at the meal there were a few more tears, but they were happy tears.

'We raised a good man,' Narcissa said with a teary smile as Draco held his new wife closely and danced with her.

'We did,' Lucius agreed as he smiled at her, 'we've come a long way, Cissa. Haven't we? Since that Valentine's day.'

Narcissa smiled, 'A very long way,' she agreed, 'and not all of it has been good, but we've supported each other through it all.'

Lucius slipped his hand into hers, 'I dread to think the kind of man I would be if not for your love, and your guidance.'

Narcissa chuckled, 'Probably a very lonely one,' she said as he pulled her to her feet. Others were joining Draco and Astoria on the dance floor and with ease he pulled her onto it, wrapping his arms around her.

'Thank you, Cissa,' Lucius mumbled into her ear, he didn't use the affectionate name particularly often so when he did it meant all the more, 'thank you for marrying me, for making me the man that I am, and for our son.'

Narcissa smiled up at her Husband, 'Thank you Lucius, for our life together, our wonderful life.'

_**The End :)  
**_

_**A/N: So this got totally out of hand and grew like a million limbs. I wrote it all in the space of about 24 hours though, so if it's totally horrible I blame it on that! Feel free to give constructive criticism but if it's just nasty abuse don't bother cause I'll just delete it!:)**_

_**Thanks for reading!**_

_**Holly **_


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